Samael: Chapter Two, Page Fifteen
It was a good year after his training began before Leroy sent Michael out to make his first kill.
Michael did not have to ask if Leroy was being updated on his progress, because Leroy came to see him at least once or twice a month. He would be grappling on the mats with Sensei Barrie or grunting as he tried to lift heavier weights than the evening before, and suddenly he could feel eyes on him. Something about Leroy’s gaze was so penetrating and invasive that Michael knew exactly who was watching him without even turning to look.
The upshot to this was that Michael didn’t feel abandoned or need to wonder when he’d be going into action; he knew Leroy would let him know the second he was ready. Nor did he feel the need to ask before taking a job at his old bookstore, because if Leroy found the job unsuitable Michael would know it in a second. When Michael went through an entire day of work without hearing a thing, he knew his choice had been approved.
(Then again, there was no reason why it wouldn’t be. After all, taking on work was just one more sign to the people around him that he was moving on with his life, however taciturn he acted. And little overtime meant there was still plenty of time for training; plus the extra cash would save him from trouble with the IRS and keep Leroy’s own expenses down.)
Still, Michael couldn’t help but be unnerved by Leroy’s quiet presence. It was almost like having a stalker. Michael began to look around for Leroy in his apartment, at the store, while he was training…His sense of privacy eroded as the weeks passed, and his naturally nervous nature turned into outright jumpiness, as if Leroy was going to jump out from underneath the kitchen table. Being a private person, Michael was naturally uncomfortable with the situation. His discomfort only grew as Leroy turned up in the strangest places and stared at him with that disturbed glint in his eyes.
He put up with it. Michael knew what he’d signed up for when he told Leroy he’d accept his offer. He wasn’t going to back out just because he was a little nervous.
But when Leroy finally did decide to do something other than stare, Michael couldn’t help but be surprised.
Michael did not have to ask if Leroy was being updated on his progress, because Leroy came to see him at least once or twice a month. He would be grappling on the mats with Sensei Barrie or grunting as he tried to lift heavier weights than the evening before, and suddenly he could feel eyes on him. Something about Leroy’s gaze was so penetrating and invasive that Michael knew exactly who was watching him without even turning to look.
The upshot to this was that Michael didn’t feel abandoned or need to wonder when he’d be going into action; he knew Leroy would let him know the second he was ready. Nor did he feel the need to ask before taking a job at his old bookstore, because if Leroy found the job unsuitable Michael would know it in a second. When Michael went through an entire day of work without hearing a thing, he knew his choice had been approved.
(Then again, there was no reason why it wouldn’t be. After all, taking on work was just one more sign to the people around him that he was moving on with his life, however taciturn he acted. And little overtime meant there was still plenty of time for training; plus the extra cash would save him from trouble with the IRS and keep Leroy’s own expenses down.)
Still, Michael couldn’t help but be unnerved by Leroy’s quiet presence. It was almost like having a stalker. Michael began to look around for Leroy in his apartment, at the store, while he was training…His sense of privacy eroded as the weeks passed, and his naturally nervous nature turned into outright jumpiness, as if Leroy was going to jump out from underneath the kitchen table. Being a private person, Michael was naturally uncomfortable with the situation. His discomfort only grew as Leroy turned up in the strangest places and stared at him with that disturbed glint in his eyes.
He put up with it. Michael knew what he’d signed up for when he told Leroy he’d accept his offer. He wasn’t going to back out just because he was a little nervous.
But when Leroy finally did decide to do something other than stare, Michael couldn’t help but be surprised.